Life, and other strange things
by DustfingerandXion
Summary: This is a sequel to my 12 Days of Christmas Merlin!Universe. You don't have to have read TDoC, but it may help with the back story and stuff. : This is SLASH, so if you don't like, don't read.
1. Duckling

**Hi there guys! I've finally got myself together and started to write another part to my Twelve Days of Christmas 'verse! Sorry for taking so long. ): Real life made an unwanted appearance, and it stole all my attention. I hope you enjoy this. (:**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Merlin or any of the characters mentioned (other than the duck, who is mine. :33), they all belong to the BBC.**

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Sometimes, Arthur really hated the fact that Merlin had such a soft spot for animals in the need of help. It was a common occurrence for Arthur to get a phone call on his way back from work, with a breathless Merlin explaining that he'd be late home because a pregnant horse was having difficulties giving birth and needed help, or something like that.

It also wasn't unusual for Arthur to come home from work to find Merlin sat on the living room or kitchen floor, hand feeding a bird with a broken wing, or an orphaned lamb, or something else so vulnerable and pathetic looking.

So he really shouldn't have been surprised to come home one Friday evening after an excruciatingly long day at work to find Merlin sat next to a crate of chirping, fluffy yellow chicks, trying desperately to hand feed them. Merlin looked up when he heard him come in through the door, eyes shining with relief.

"Thank God, Arthur. Give me a hand, would you?" As if on cue, all the chicks attempted a bid for freedom, chirping loudly. Faking an enthusiastic smile, Arthur ran very quickly up the stairs, claiming the need to change out of his suit. Taking as long as possible in an attempt to get out of playing vet, he sighed.

Being in a relationship with a vet, Arthur decided, was exhausting.

*****

Two hour of struggling to feed ten hungry chicks later, Arthur had stupidly offered to settle them down for the night, while Merlin made them both a cup of well-earnt tea. As he placing one of the bigger chicks in the box for the _third _time, Arthur came across something odd. Scooping the tiny bird out of the crate and carefully holding it in his hands, Arthur frowned. He squinted at it for a few moments, checking it briefly against another chick.

"Merlin," He called over his shoulder. "Are you sure this is a chick?"

"Of course it's a chick!"

"Clearly your years at veterinary school were a waste, _Mer_lin." Arthur turned, as a disgruntled Merlin threw a tea-towel at his head. "Look." He watched as Merlin inspected in the bird in the dim light, waiting for the penny to drop. He didn't have to wait long. With a gasp, Merlin cried,

"It's a duckling!"

"And you call yourself a vet."

*****

"Well, no, Sophia, I didn't realise until Arthur pointed it out a moment ago! Where could it have come from?"

Arthur listened carefully as Merlin spoke to the head nurse at the veterinary surgery, cradling the duckling in a small towel, gently stroking it's head. Ever since he'd discovered it, much to Merlin's amusement, Arthur had been strangely smitten with the small creature. He'd spent the past half hour clutching it gently to his chest, away from the other birds, despite Merlin's warnings about not getting too attached.

He'd also completely ignored Merlin's order of "Do not name it under any circumstances", and gone ahead and christened him Excalibur. It was a huge name for a tiny bird, but Arthur figured he'd grow into it sooner or later

"He's been very helpful, actually. Already got attached to the duckling. It's quite adorable really." Arthur frowned as he heard the conversation switch to be about him. "No, he won't put it down. Literally. He's holding it right now." Merlin plonked down next to him on the sofa. "Alright, I'll see you on Monday. Bye." Putting the phone down on the arm of the sofa, Merlin ran his fingers absently through Arthur's hair. "How is it?"

"_He _is fine." Arthur looked down at the sleeping duckling adoringly.

"How do you know it's a boy?"

"I don't. But Excalibur is a bit of an odd name for a girl, don't you think?"

Merlin frowned, brushing Arthur's hair away from his face, much like a concerned would do. "Arthur..."

"I know, I know – I wasn't supposed to name him, or get attached, and I know you told me to leave him in the box with the others, but he looked so lonely... I bet you they rejected him." He ran a gentle finger over the duckling's head, watching it protectively.

"I'm sure they didn't, Arthur."

"Oh, you'd be surprised – Children are horrible."

At the extremely solemn expression on his Arthur's face, Merlin laughed, ruffling Arthur's hair. "You're so cute when you're serious." He stood up, and ignoring Arthur's protests, gently took the duckling from his arms, and placed it in the crate with the other bird.

"Come on, Arthur. Time for bed." Taking his hand, he pulled him off the sofa and attempted to lead him upstairs. "He'll still be there in two hours when we have to feed him again."

"Just lemme check-"

"He'll be fine, Arthur. Come on." Unwillingly, Arthur let himself be lead up the stairs and into their bedroom.

Laying in bed ten minutes later, Arthur stared at the ceiling, thoughts on the welfare of Excalibur. His concentration switched elsewhere when Merlin snuggled in close to him, one arm lazily lain across his stomach.

"You know, you'd be an excellent father."

"You think so?" Surprised, but secretly pleased, Arthur laced his fingers with Merlin's.

"Mmhmm." Merlin replied, sleepily burying his nose in Arthur's shoulder.

Smiling, Arthur closed his eyes.

*****

What barely felt like minutes later, Arthur was jolted away by the shrill bleeping of the alarm. Slapping his hand around wildly in an attempt to shut it up, Arthur cursed when he smacked his knuckles into the edge of his bedside table.

Rubbing his sore hand, Arthur sat up slowly. Momentarily confused as to why Merlin was not sprawled out next to him, taking up the majority of the bed with his long limbs, Arthur let his eyes flicker around the room until they fell on the clock. He paused for a second, before throwing back the covers and leaping out the bed.

A very sleepy looking Merlin peered over a mug of coffee at him as he crashed down the stairs, hair ruffled by sleep, wearing only his boxers.

"Why didn't you wake me? It's 6AM! What about the chicks!"

"Good morning, Arthur." A blonde head popped up above the sofa, grinning widely. The pretty young woman waved briefly before turning her attention back to the squawking chick in her lap. "Sleep well?" She gestured vaguely at his state of undress.

"Uhh... yes thanks." Turning quickly to a smirking Merlin for an explanation, Arthur grabbed what he hoped was his hoodie off the back of the sofa. He was relieved to find that it was the one he bought Merlin for Christmas, and swiftly pulled it over his head.

"You remember Sophia, right Arthur? She volunteered herself to help me feed them. I figured you needed the sleep." Face infuriatingly satisfied, Merlin held his hands out to Arthur, offering him the over-excited duckling. "I saved him for you."

All lingering annoyance very quickly ebbed away as Arthur took Excalibur from him gently, smiling as Merlin leant in for a kiss.

"Thanks."

*****

Merlin really shouldn't have got Arthur to drive him to the veterinary surgery the following evening.

When Merlin had told him the surgery had found a proper foster family for the young birds, he felt like the worst boyfriend in the world. Arthur had looked so devastated, Merlin really thought he was going to cry. Which wasn't like Arthur at all.

They'd spent the entire journey there in silence, and Arthur had refused to go inside with him to hand them over to the nurses.

"Don't you want to say goodbye?" Holding the crate to his chest, Merlin frowned, watching Arthur carefully, expression concerned. Arthur was sat very straight in the driver's seat, hands on the steering wheel, eyes forward.

"No."

"Okay... I won't be long..." Leaning through the window, Merlin brushed Arthur's hair away from his face and gently kissed his forehead. "See you in a mo." Walking slowly so as not to jostle the chicks, Merlin joined Sophia inside.

*****

Ten minutes later, Arthur momentarily looked up to see Merlin walking toward the car, carrying a crate. His heart leapt for a second, before he remembered he'd dug the box out of the garage – Merlin was merely bringing it home.

He let out a sigh and started up the car. Merlin's door closed quietly. Confused as to why Merlin wasn't putting on his seatbelt, Arthur looked over, only to find Merlin watching him carefully, holding out the box to him.

"What am I supposed to do with that? I'm driving."

"Just take it."

Frowning, Arthur took the box and looked inside. Merlin looked on adoringly as Arthur's face lit up.

"Excalibur! How did you..."

"The foster family only had room for the chicks, and didn't have a pond for him, so I pulled some strings, and he is officially yours!" With a small 'mmf', Merlin's breath was knocked out of him as Arthur flung his arms around his neck, the box wedged in between. Excalibur gave an indignant squawk as he was jostled around.

"You're welcome, love."


	2. BabySitting

**Hello again! The next installment - finally. XDD**

**I hope you enjoy this one as much as I enjoyed writing it. :D**

**Unfortunately for me, I do not own any part of the Merlin series, not even a neckerchief. ):**

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Merlin had never put Arthur down as someone who would love children. And he'd definitely never thought Arthur wanted children of his own some day. It had come as a shock to him one Thursday evening, when, over dinner, Arthur had told him that as a teenager, he'd frequently baby-sat for his neighbours.

If he was honest, Merlin didn't believe him. He just simply couldn't imagine a sixteen-year-old, hormonal Arthur willingly looking after someone else's children. Especially not doing it well.

So when Lancelot and Gwen asked them if they could look after their toddler for the evening while they went out for an anniversary dinner, Merlin very happily said they would, just to see if Arthur really had been telling the truth. Of course, he would never tell Arthur his true meaning for giving up their Friday night, and insisted that it was just a favour for an old friend.

Although he would never tell Merlin this, Arthur didn't believe him.

*****

Gwen was worried. She felt awful for doubting her friends and their ability to look after her child, but she really couldn't help herself. Lancelot kept telling her it was just because it was the first time leaving their daughter with a sitter, and she would feel the same with anyone – this was better, he insisted, because at least she knew they were good people already. She stood with him on the doorstep, clutching their daughter, Avaline, close to her chest. At her worried expression, Lancelot took her free hand in his, squeezing it comfortingly.

"They'll be fine. Arthur did a lot of baby-sitting when we were kids." Smiling encouragingly, he rapped his knuckles firmly on the door, having realized that they still hadn't replaced their doorbell; even though Lancelot had pointed out to them it wasn't working over a year ago. Shaking his head, he made a mental note to remind them later.

"Did anyone ever ask him to babysit twice?"

"Well, no, but-"

"I don't think this is such a good idea, Lance." Gwen cut him off quickly, her expression concerned. "Maybe we shouldn't go out and just go home… come on." Just as she was about to turn to leave, the door opened to reveal a slightly breathless Arthur, still towel-drying his hair. _At least he's dressed… _She thought, forcing an enthusiastic smile on her face.

"You're early!" He claimed, shaking Lancelot's hand. "I thought you said seven?"

"It _is _seven, Arthur…" Gwen said, embracing him. She looked down in shock as a very firm 'Quack!' resonated from around Arthur's feet. The small, young duck looked up at her, its face somehow expressing sheer fury. It would seem she'd just stepped on its foot. "You have a duck?" She asked incredulously, tightening her hold on her daughter.

"Erm, yes. Gwen, meet Excalibur." At Lancelot's snort of amusement, he scooped the duck up off the floor, holding him protectively to his chest – much like Gwen was holding Avaline.

"Pleasure, I'm sure…" Turning to Lancelot for some kind of encouragement, Gwen was slightly comforted when Avaline twisted in her arms, feeling she was missing out, and upon seeing Arthur, grinned widely, threw out her arms, and cried,

"Arfur!" Leaving Excalibur to waddle off into the house in search of food, Arthur held his arms out to meet her.

"See Gwen," Lancelot smiled, watching her pass over their now extremely impatient daughter to a grinning Arthur. "I told you it would be fine."

"Ava!" Hugging her close, she squealed happily when he swung her around.

"Where's Merlin?" Gwen peered around Arthur's shoulder, hoping to spot the other man bouncing around somewhere in the background. She didn't.

"In the shower."

"But I thought you were just in the shower?" Confused, Gwen held out the bag she had put together, full of her daughter's toys, pajamas and other things.

"I was." Arthur frowned a little at Gwen's question, taking the offered bag and placing it in the hallway. He also took the stuffed penguin toy from Lancelot when Ava seemed too preoccupied re-styling his hair to take her favourite toy from her father.

"But you can't both have been in the… oh. OH." Gwen flushed a bright shade of red, suddenly understanding. Behind her, Lancelot burst into fits of laughter. "Well, that's um… Well." She cleared her throat uncomfortably. "We'll be back at about ten, depending on traffic…"

"Okay – we'll see you then. Say goodbye to your parents, Ava." Almost instantly, she screamed "BYE!" right in Arthur's ear, and began to demand hugs from both of her parents at least twice before they could even think about leaving.

Ten minutes of frantic hugging later, Arthur stood waving to Gwen and Lance, Ava on his back, after having gone through a re-positioning, as she demanded to be held "monkey-style". Already she had put her hands over his eyes, pulled his hair, and almost choked him by wrapping her arms so tightly around his throat.

Rubbing his neck with one hand, he shut the front door. "Right, Ava. Shall we go find Merlin?"

"To Merrrlin!" She cried, punching him in the side of the head as she enthusiastically stuck her fist in the air. Flinching at the sudden shout so close to his ear, and the pummeling he had gone through, he sighed quality. Tonight was going to be interesting to say the least…

*****

"Eat your sweet corn, Ava." Arthur said over his shoulder, placing dirty dishes in the washing-up bowl.

She stuck out her tongue, pulling an extremely disgusted face, being forcefully pushing her bowl away. The pink plastic flower clattered dangerously close to the edge of the table. "Why?"

"Well, because it's good for you." He gently placed the bowl in front of her again, slinging the drying up cloth onto his shoulder.

"Why?" She pushed the bowl away from her again, grimacing at its contents.

"Because… It's vegetables? And they're good for your health." He placed the bowl down in front of her once more, slightly more firmly this time.

"But why are they vegetables?" Arthur opened his mouth to answer her, before closing it again when he realized he actually had no response for that.

"Well, because… um…" Flailing for an answer, he leant against the dining table, folding his arms against his chest. "Why don't you ask Merlin that? He'll know." Seemingly content with this suggestion, she moved to get down from her chair. "_After _all the sweet corn is gone!"

Pausing only for a moment, she flipped the bowl upside down, thus hiding the yellow vegetable from view. "All gone!" She cried happily, before running out of the kitchen toward a dozing Merlin sprawled on the sofa.

Watching her go in disbelief, Arthur glared at the up-turned bowl sat smugly on the table – that he hadn't expected. He was slightly appeased, however, when he heard Ava shriek "Merrrlin! Wakey wakey!" and Merlin reply with a loud 'oof!' suggesting she had just thrown herself at him. He scooped up the discarded bowl and unwanted sweet corn, smiling softly to himself. He had to hand it to her – she was good at thinking on the spot.

*****

"What do you mean you can't find her?!" Merlin poked his head over the banister, staring down at a frantic Arthur.

"I mean, _Mer_lin: I. Can't. Find. Her." He ran desperate hands through his hair, his fingers gripping tightly onto it.

"She's probably just wandered off and hidden behind a cupboard or something."

"What are we going to do?!" Arthur span on his heels to peer hopefully down the hall, hands tugging on his hair. "What are we going to tell her _parents_?!"

"We'll find her, Arthur. You look downstairs, and I'll look upstairs, okay? She'll get bored sooner or later and come out."

Merlin, however, was very wrong. After thirty minutes of fruitless searching, Merlin had found two left socks he'd been looking for for months, a £20 note, and a pair of Arthur's underpants, but no Ava. Despite being extremely calm when he had previously spoken to Arthur, he began to feel an overwhelming wave of worry creep up on him.

"Arthur!" He called, pushing the dresser back into place (she never would've fit behind it, but he had to check – just in case). "I'm having no luck," he continued, after Arthur acknowledged he could hear him. "I'm calling Lance." As Merlin rather valued his life, there was no way in hell he would call Gwen – Lance was less likely to go insane and tear Merlin's head off before he'd had a chance to explain.

Fumbling around for a phone and Lancelot's mobile number, Merlin took a deep breath before he dialed. Lancelot picked up after three rings.

/_Everything alright, Merlin?/_

"Erm. Kind of." Merlin braced himself before continuing. "We were, erm, playing hide and seek, and well…"

A harsher, worried voice cut across. _/Well, what?/ _That was Gwen. Merlin silently cursed the day Arthur had shown Lance how to put his phone on loudspeaker.

"It's been an hour and we can't see to-"

"FOUND HER!" Arthur's sudden shout of triumph cut Merlin off, and he thanked all his lucky stars twice over for Arthur's uncanny knack for good timing.

"Nevermind! Everything's perfect! Enjoy the rest of your evening, and don't drink too much!"

*****

"I told you it wasn't a good idea, Lance." Gwen shook her head so violently, a few curls escaped from her fancy up-do.

"They said they were fine, Gwen."

"They _lost _her! How is that fine?!" She glanced over at him, crossing her arms angrily.

"Well they found her, didn't they? It was only a game of hide and seek." Sighing softly, he laid a comforting hand on her knee, turning his Jeep into the driveway. Instantly, Gwen threw open the door, heels clicking furiously on the tarmac as she approached the door.

"I swear, if she even _looks _upset, I will castrate them both!"

Wincing at his wife's choice of words, Lancelot slipped an arm around her waist, knocking on the door. "Isn't that a little drastic?"

"Maybe." Her anger seemed to falter for a moment. She sighed heavily, resting her head against her husband's shoulder. "Tell me she'll be fine."

"She'll be fine." He smiled as Merlin opened the door.

"Nice evening?" Merlin asked, gesturing for them to come in.

"Brilliant, thanks. You?"

"It was great. Honestly, you've got yourself a fantastic kid there." Gwen's demeanor seemed to soften slightly at Merlin's words, and Lancelot let out a sigh of relief. "Arthur's just getting her.

As if on cue, Arthur appeared at the bottom of the stairs, holding a sleeping Ava. Dressed in her pajamas ad clinging to her stuffed penguin, she looked completely content, allowing Gwen to let out a breath she didn't know she'd been holding, and have absolutely no reason to hurt either of them. She continued to frown, however, until Ava was safely back in her arms.

"Well, thanks for looking after her guys – we owe you one."

Arthur waved Lancelot's words off casually. "It's fine, honestly."

"Have a nice weekend." Gwen smiled at both of them, giving them quick hugs before she left."

"And you." Stood together in the doorway, Arthur and Merlin waved them off.

"I think…" Merlin began, closing the front door. "That one day, we should think about having kids… we'd be good at it, I reckon."

"I don't know if you've noticed, Merlin, but we're both lacking several essential parts." He ducked as Merlin attempted to swat him over the head.

"I'm being serious. I don't know… we could adopt or something?"

Arthur smiled, wrapping his arms around Merlin's waist, pulling him close. "We should look into it." His smile widened as Merlin's face lit up.

Merlin rested his forehead against Arthur's, slinging his arms loosely around his neck. "Really?"

"Really."


	3. Anniversary Part One

**So, sixth form has been eating my life. Seriously, its taken me over a month to write three thousand words. ): It's almost painful. But still, here I am! With new fic! Yaaay! I've decided to split this into three parts (mainly to give me a chance to get more stuff written for you, without leaving you hanging with nothing for too long), but also because it's a bit too long to be posted all in one go. (: So, hope you enjoy!**

**DISCLAIMER: I only own the plot. The characters all belong to the mighty BBC.**

* * *

Merlin rolled over in bed, flinging one arm out towards Arthur's side of the bed, searching for warmth. When his hand merely connected with semi-warm mattress, he frowned sleepily, running his hand over the empty expanse of bed in an attempt to locate his boyfriend. After about ten seconds of sleepy searching, he gave up, opening his eyes. He clamped them shut again quickly when the light hit them, momentarily dazing him. Merlin tried again slowly, opening one eye first to test the light level. Deeming it safe, he opened the other eye and sat up carefully. As he rubbed the sleep from his eyes, he yawned widely, glancing around the room. Arthur's jeans were still sprawled across the floor from where he'd failed to put them away the previous evening, and his shoes were lying almost mockingly in front of the wardrobe, despite the fact Merlin had _specifically _told Arthur to put them away. Despite finding proof of Arthur's ridiculously lazy existence, Merlin couldn't find the man himself.

Where the hell had he gone?

He huffed, flopping back down on the bed. It was _cold _dammit! Bundling himself up in the covers (especially Arthur's half, just to spite him when he came back), he tried to work out why he'd woken up. Usually on a Saturday, Arthur had to tear the covers off him, shake him, and shout in his face just to get a grunt of response. A distant clang jolted him out of his thoughts, and instantly, the penny dropped. Arthur was cooking.

Cooking?

Arthur never cooked. Merlin's frown deepened. Merlin had won the cooking duty fair and square (when they'd first moved in together, they'd allocated different duties to each other. Both of them had wanted cooking instead of cleaning, so, like adults, they'd settled it over a game of Rock-Paper-Scissors), so what did Arthur think he was doing?

As he lay cocooned in the covers, Merlin peered toward the door when he heard Arthur walking up the stairs. He was walking incredibly slowly, which either meant he'd hurt his knee again (Arthur claimed that it was an old Rugby injury that kept hurting every now and then, but Merlin strongly believed that Arthur feigned pain for sympathy.) or he was carrying something. As much as Merlin knew Arthur was likely to be whiney and want attention, he figured it would most likely be the latter.

What could he be carrying? Oh God, he wasn't bringing Excalibur up to bed again, was he?

As Arthur nudged open the door, all anger about his heat source leaving the bed, and Arthur leaving clothes out, completely disappeared. Looking very sleep-ruffled, and exceptionally proud of himself, Arthur was stood in the doorway, carrying a tray of breakfast. It was only cereal and a mug of tea (albeit in Merlin's favourite mug – the green one with sheep on.), but it was the though that counted.

Arthur slowly handed him the tray of breakfast, and once he made sure Merlin had a proper hold on it, he snuggled back under the covers with him, and pressed a kiss to his forehead.

"Happy Anniversary, love."

"Do you remember when we first met?" Arthur ran his hand absently through Merlin's hair.

"Of course I do. Kay was being an idiot." Sat with his back to Arthur's chest, Merlin pulled the covers further up his body, protecting himself from the cold.

Arthur flinched. "Sorry about that." Arthur had always felt bad about his friend's behaviour. Merlin shrugged it off instantly, going back to tracing his fingers along the pattern on the duvet. "I mean, properly, when you weren't being miserable, and I wasn't throwing bits of paper at your head."

"That was you?" Merlin looked up sharply, frowning deeply.

"Um. No?"

_*Nine years earlier. *_

The common room at college was always packed at lunchtimes. So packed, that people couldn't really split off into their separate groups of friends – everyone just seemed to merge into one group. If you saw one of your friends at the other end of the room, you would have to battle you way through everybody, shouting "Excuse me" practically in people's ears, just so they could hear you. In the summer, it got ridiculously hot and stuffy, and if you were claustrophobic, you were doomed.

Merlin hated it. Especially when he found himself squashed around a table with about ten other people, many of which he didn't even know. He always sat with Freya and Will, and today, he found himself shouting out answers to Freya's maths homework, occasionally pausing to look around desperately when something light hit the back of his head.

"Will!" He turned to look sharply at his friends, yanking the headphones off of his head. "Stop throwing things at me!"

"Hey!" Will wrenched his headphones from Merlin's grasp, placing them gently on top of his Walkman, almost lovingly. "I didn't throw anything at you!" He gestured wildly at his open chemistry book. "I'm too busy to throw things at you!"

As if to prove Will's point, something hit him squarely on the back of head. He snapped his head around quickly, looking around suspiciously. The only people he could see were Arthur Pendragon and his friends at the table behind him (Merlin noticed bitterly how none of them were squashed shoulder to shoulder. He figured that was what you got when your father paid for an entire new science block.) He watched as Arthur attempted to shove one of his prattish friends off of his chair, laughing loudly. Merlin had always found Arthur unbearably attractive, but because of Arthur's popularity, and Merlin's distinct lack of it, they'd never even spoken to each other.

He looked away quickly as Arthur noticed him watching, and quickly went back to helping a desperate Freya with her homework.

This went well for about five minutes, until a much larger piece of _something _hit him on the back of the neck. In frustration, he slammed his fist onto the table top, startling the people around him. "Stop throwing things at me!" He growled.

As if in response, he was instantly pummeled with about five pieces of rolled up paper. He stood up quickly, his chair skidding loudly on the floor. Grabbing his stuff and shoving it into his bag, he cast one last look in the direction the projectiles had been coming from, before attempting to walk calmly out of the common room, a warm feeling in his chest. When he'd glanced behind him, he'd seen Arthur angrily slapping his prattish friend on the back of the head, and had heard him hiss, "When will you learn to grow up? Was it really necessary to chase him off?"

"Thank you for doing that." Merlin tilted his head back so that he could place a kiss on Arthur's chin.

"For doing what?"

"Sticking up for me. More than once." Merlin snuggled into his embrace as Arthur tightened his arm around Merlin's chest.

"Kay was always an idiot. He deserved it."

"I don't just mean then. I mean all the other times."

"Oh. Well, you're welcome." They sat in companionable silence for a moment, while Arthur continued to run his fingers through Merlin's hair. "…I was not a prat, by the way."

"Yes you were."

"No, I wasn't." Arthur gently tugged on Merlin's hair, only to be rewarded with a sharp poke to the ribs.

"You were."

Merlin hated Maths. As soon as he'd sat down in his first lesson at college, he'd regretted taking it. It wasn't that he couldn't do it – on the contrary, Merlin was very good at Maths – he just found it ridiculously tedious.

As he sat down heavily in his seat, Merlin let out a heavy sigh, pulling his sweater sleeves over his hands. Why had Arthur stood up for him like that? It wasn't like they were friends – Hell, Merlin doubted Arthur even knew his name. He'd Arthur refer to him as "that strange guy with the big ears" many times, but never by his name.

So he was shocked into silence when Arthur sat down in the seat next to him, completely ignoring the people he usually sat with, and began to get his books out of bag, and said, "Do you mind if I sit here, Merlin?"

Heart hammering in his chest, Merlin shook his head. "How do you… How do you know my name?"

Merlin watched as Arthur frowned, his expression confused. "Should I not know your name?"

"Yes. I mean… No. Well, you've never spoken to me before." Merlin's voice had shook, and no matter how hard he tried to sound more confident, he still sounded like a bumbling moron. Cursing his own stupidity, he turned his attention to the questions their teacher was putting on the board,

"Just because I don't speak to you, doesn't mean I don't know who you are." Merlin hated how happy that had made him feel. "Besides, I'm talking to you now, you idiot."

"Hey!" Merlin lowered his voice quickly as the teacher glared at him from across the room. "I'm not an idiot… prat."

At the shocked expression on Arthur's face, Merlin's heart sank. Had he gone too far? "I mean, um…" To his surprise, Arthur clapped a hand on his shoulder, chuckling softly.

"You're an odd one, Merlin."


	4. Anniversary Part Two

**Yay for more updates! Woohoo! Hopefully, the dividers will be included in this one. -.- I made sure to check. So, this is the continuation of Anniversary. I still just own the plot. All the rest belongs to the BBC. (:**

**Enjoy!**

* * *

"You always were good at Maths." Arthur mused, nuzzling his nose into Merlin's neck.

"Better than you."

"A lot better than me."

* * *

Merlin jumped as Arthur threw his pen down in frustration, growling quietly. Ever since Arthur had first sat down next to him, it had become a permanent thing. Neither of them had questioned their sudden semi-friendship, and neither of them acknowledged each other outside of the Maths classroom, but it worked – somehow.

"What's wrong?"

"I just don't get it!" Arthur cried, throwing his hands up in exasperation. "Makes no fucking _sense! _" He pushed his notebook away from him his expression one of disgust.

"Do you want me to explain it?"

"What makes you think I want _your _help?" Arthur growled, fiercely running his hands through his hair. The way he looked at Merlin had him recoiling in shock. At Merlin's horror, Arthur's expression quickly changed to shame. "God, I'm so sorry. I'm sorry, Merlin, I just… It's just so _hard. _And I _need _to pass this stupid class."

Merlin didn't question him further, just picked up Arthur's pen and gently pulled hi notebook toward him. He looked over the furious scribbles for a moment. "Ah. I see what you've done – You've just subtracted this instead of dividing it. That's why it's not working." He pointed to a particularly angry scrawl. "Do you see?"

Arthur leant over, his brow furrowed. "Is it really that simple?" He said slowly, as if he were scared Merlin were lying to him.

"Yes, it really is."

Merlin couldn't help but smile as Arthur's face relaxed with relief. "Thank you, Merlin." Arthur grinned at him, expression grateful. "Any time."

Arthur gratefully took the steaming mug of coffee Merlin held out to him, holding it out of the way as the dark-haired man cuddled back up to him, pulling the covers close.

* * *

"You had some interesting clothes at college." Arthur remembered, sipping his drink.

"My clothes were not _interesting. _They were just fine." Merlin huffed loudly, pulling the sleeves of one of Arthur's hoodies over his hands – he'd made a habit of using Arthur's jumpers instead of his own (he claimed they were comfier than his own, but secretly, he liked the idea of people knowing he was with Arthur when he wore them in public.). "At least I didn't look like everyone else, like you."

"Merlin," Arthur said sternly, as if explaining to a small child why mud did not belong in the house. "Those jumpers looked like your grandmother knitted them."

Merlin paused. "Arthur, my grandmother _did _knit them."

"Oh my God."

* * *

"Nice jumper!" Merlin ignored the shouts from Arthur's prattish friends, and tried to drown out the growing feeling of embarrassment.

"Hey! I'm talking to you!" Merlin flinched as one of them (Kay, he vaguely remembered Arthur telling him) flicked water at the back of his head. Over the next few minutes, the back of his head and neck got progressively more wet, as Merlin fought to stem the overwhelming shame, and Kay got more and more irate.

When the empty bottle collided with his now dripping head, Merlin gave up on trying to be brave, and quickly left the common room. What he didn't realize was that Kay had followed him out into the empty corridor.

"Hey, freak." Merlin froze, gripping the strap of his satchel tightly. "Did you think I'd just let you make a fool of me in front of Arthur and all my friends, and get away with it?"

Merlin looked around frantically for help as he heard Kay saunter up behind him.

"Really? Because if you did, you really are as stupid as you look." Merlin turned around to face Kay quickly, eyes wide with fear. This wasn't the first time Merlin had faced Kay in this way, but it had never come to much (a teacher normally saved Merlin before anything could happen.). "You're going to pay for that."

Merlin barely had time to react before Kay's fist connected with his nose – hard. He let out a small cry of surprise and pain, stumbling backward to land on his back on the floor. Kay landed a sharp kick to Merlin's stomach before he had time to move away, drawing out a small yelp.

He quickly curled up into a tight ball, ignoring the pain in his face and stomach. Terrified, he waited for the next blow. When it didn't come, he peeked under his arm to see what had stopped Kay's attack. What he saw made his heart leap – he watched as Arthur ran down the corridor, face furious. He stopped suddenly to push Kay so hard in the chest, he went stumbling back a few steps.

"What do you think you're doing?" At the tone of Arthur's voice, and the fierce protective anger in it, Merlin was shocked into hiding his head under his arms again.

"Teaching him a lesson! He needs a little respect!"

Arthur laughed bitterly. "Respect for who? You? Don't make me laugh." There was a small pause as the two boys attempted to stare each other down. "Get out of here before I make you."

Merlin slowly uncurled himself, flinching against the pain in his stomach. He watched as Kay stormed off down the corridor, and he feared this wasn't over. "Well that's gonna leave a bruise."

Arthur's head snapped around at the sound of Merlin's voice. His expression quickly switched from anger to concern, as he gestured to Merlin's nose. "No, don't!" He cried, just as Merlin used his sleeve to inspect the damage. "Too late."

Merlin frowned at the large red smear on his jumper. "Oh."

"Yes, oh." Arthur crouched in front of him, and instantly tilted Merlin's chin back to inspect his nose. "The bastard." He hissed.

"Well, at least it's not broken." Merlin joked lamely. Arthur's shoulders visibly tensed, and he audibly ground his teeth together.

"I'm gonna kill him."

Shocked, but privately a little pleased that Arthur cared so much, Merlin shook his head. "Please don't – not on my account."

"Why not? He almost broke your nose!" The look of pure outrage and disbelief on Arthur's face had Merlin laughing. He stopped almost as soon as he started, wincing against the pain. Concerned, Arthur gently lifted the hem of Merlin's jumper (Despite Merlin's protesting), cursing in frustration at the large bruise that had begun to form. "Please let me kill him."

"Definitely not."

"At least let me give you this." He pulled out a slightly screwed up hoodie from his bag and attempted to smooth out the wrinkles. Giving up when he saw how useless it would be, he thrust it at Merlin. He gestured to the blotches of red on his sleeve, as if by way of explanation. "People will ask questions."

As Merlin switched jumpers gratefully, a small frown tugged at his forehead. "People will ask questions as to why I have 'A. Pendragon – Captain' emblazoned on my back."

Without hesitation, Arthur replied, "Let them."

* * *

"I got so much grief for that jumper, you know." Merlin playfully poked at Arthur's ribs. "I still have it."

"The bloody one?" Arthur frowned at him from his new position – Merlin was sat opposite him, hogging the duvet.

"No, your Rugby one." Merlin replied, in a tone that suggested Arthur was an idiot.

"I did wonder where it went. " Arthur continued to frown. "You know, I got in so much trouble when I told the coach I didn't have it."

Merlin smirked. "Well, you never asked for it back."

"Surely it's common courtesy to give it back the next day?"

"Yes, it is. But," Merlin blushed and ducked his head. "I didn't want to. I kind of thought if I gave it back, it at all never would have happened."

Arthur's expression softened. "Do you _really _still have it? After all these years?" He gently cupped Merlin's face in his hand.

"Yep. It's still far too big for me, but I wear it at the surgery sometimes."

"With the animals?" Arthur's expression turned back to a frown as he imagined all sorts of creatures drooling over it.

"Yep."

"Thanks for that."

Merlin quickly changed the topic, kissing Arthur's wrist gently. "Do you remember our first kiss?"

* * *

Arthur hated Wednesdays. It was the only day he didn't have any free periods, like everyone else. His day got off to a great start with double Law, to be followed with an hour of English, two hours of Maths, and to top it all off, he had an hour and a half of Rugby practice afterwards.

Law had been particularly uneventful, with the teacher piling two essays on them to be handed in at the end of the week (which Arthur was just about ready to smash his head into a table over), and English had been exceptionally tedious. The majority of his friends had already gone home (what with half days and liberal amounts of study periods), and due to his English teacher failing to check the clock, he was late for Maths.

Despite his day having not gone well so far, and really feeling like dragging his feet and being miserable, he found himself jogging to get to Maths, just so he could get his usual seat next to Merlin (even though the younger boy still hadn't given back his jumper. It had been three weeks now – what the hell was he doing with it?).

He was quickly jolted out of his thoughts when he turned a sharp corner quickly and crashed into the back of someone hurrying in the same direction. The person in front went flying with a small 'mmf', landing heavily on their knees.

"Watch it!" They cried, turning to face the moron who ran into them. "Oh! It's you!" Merlin face lit up when he saw who had knocked him down.

"Merlin! God, I'm sorry!" Arthur offered Merlin a hand up, which he gratefully took. The force with which he was pulled to his feet brought Merlin to a stop a few inches from Arthur's face. "You're late too." Arthur breathed, making no move to step away.

"I am indeed." Merlin fiddled with the strap on his bag, avoiding looking Arthur in the eye. He blinked slowly when Arthur gently tilted his head back up.

"We're _incredibly _late." Arthur murmured, not caring in the slightest. He shifted forward a little to quickly, so his nose bumped with Merlin's. "We should probably go."

"Mm." In a way that was uncharacteristically brave, Merlin closed the distance between them, pressing his lips gently to Arthur's. He pulled back immediately, eyes wide with shock at his own actions. "Wow, um, I'm sorry, Arthur, that was-"

"Shut up, Merlin." Arthur slipped his arms around Merlin's waist, connecting their lips again – smiling a little when Merlin gripped Arthur's sleeve, but didn't pull away. Their movements were slow, careful and uncertain.

Arthur was the first to pull away, his breathing heavy. He smiled as Merlin leant his forehead against Arthur's, their noses just brushing. All thoughts asking for his jumper back completely gone, Arthur linked his fingers with Merlin's. "I quite like being late."

"Me too."

* * *

"Our Maths teacher went insane when we came in twenty minutes late." Merlin laughed softly, nuzzling his nose into Arthur's neck. He gently kissed the skin there, watching Arthur's Adam's apple move as he laughed.

"He did. What excuse did we give him?"

"Something about a nosebleed, I think." Merlin kissed Arthur's neck again, gently nipping at his collarbone.

"Was that the best we could come up with?"

"The best _you _could come up with. You were so unimaginative."

"I'm very imaginative." Arthur defended, moving his head so that Merlin had better access to his neck.

"Oh, I know." Merlin chuckled against Arthur's skin.


	5. Anniversary Part Three

**Yay! The final part! I know, it's pathetically small. *hides* But! I hope you enjoy it. (:**

**I still only own the plot, and all the characters belong to the mighty BBC. (:**

**Thank you for all the lovely reviews I've had for this - they really made me smile. :D**

* * *

"I'm not sure about this, Arthur." Merlin gripped Arthur's hand tightly, biting his lip.

"Why?" Arthur turned to face him, placing an encouraging kiss on the tip of his nose.

"What are people going to say?"

"Does it really matter?"

"Well, no, but-"

"What's the problem them?" Arthur attempted to tug Merlin toward the common room doors, smiling comfortingly. "Come on, no-ones going to look twice. It'll be good." He ignored Merlin's continued protests and pushed open the doors, pulling Merlin behind him.

* * *

Upon seeing Arthur enter the common room, Lancelot waved, smiling. Leon gestured for him to join them As Arthur fully entered the room and began to walk toward them; they spotted Arthur's hand interlaced with Merlin's. Lancelot's smile momentarily faltered, and as people saw his pause, they noticed the two boys who had just arrived. A ripple of whispers and nudges travelled quickly across the room.

Merlin's stomach dropped. He'd known this had been a bad idea, and that it would go horribly wrong. He slowly attempted to hide from the accusing looks behind Arthur, his shame deepening. He was seriously considering bailing now, and running as far away as possible, when Lancelot stepped forward, a smile on his face. He offered his hand for Merlin to shake.

"You must be Merlin. I'm Lancelot."

Leon stepped forward to clap Merlin on the shoulder. "Arthur hasn't shut up about you for weeks. I'm Leon." Over Leon's shoulder, Merlin could just about see Freya and Will giving him enthusiastic thumbs up signs.

Feeling a little more at ease, Merlin shook the offered hand. "Um, hi." As Lancelot began introducing everyone else, (Gwen, Lancelot's girlfriend; Owain ad his brother Gwaine; Percy and Sophia), Arthur leant in close to Merlin's ear.

"See, I told you we'd be good."


	6. Pottermore

**So, the idea for this came to me while I was waiting for my confirmation email from Pottermore (My username is KnightAuror13, btw. Look out for me if you got early access!). I do not own any of the Merlin characters, or Pottermore, nor do I make any profit from this. It's just for fun. Enjoy!**

**P.S. Bonus points if you spot the Harry Potter quote!**

* * *

Merlin is pretty sure he's been waiting for this for his entire life. Well, maybe not his entire life, because it was only announced a few months ago, but whatever. He's been waiting a _long time. _Today is the 30th of July, and, after dragging himself through a grueling twelve hour shift, Merlin was happily sprawled across the sofa, his head resting in Arthur's lap and Arthur's laptop resting on his stomach (Arthur's laptop was better than Merlin's – it was newer and something shiny and silver and expensive, and it had very quick loading times. Time was money that evening.)

Arthur ran his fingers idly through Merlin's hair, making it stand on end more than usual. "Remind me why practically all our friends keep calling us and screaming down the phone?" Merlin snorted.

"It's hardly all our friends, Arthur. Please give our social lives _some _credit."

"I said _practically _all our friends. Listen with your ears, Merlin, God knows they're big enough." Arthur retorted good-naturedly, smoothing his thumb over the frown-lines that appeared when Merlin pretended to be affronted.

"I'm sorry, Arthur, what was that? I'm just hearing this inane twittering? Did you say something?" He grinned as Arthur laughed, tugging gently at his hair.

"Enough of your cheek, _Mer_lin. But honestly, what's so special about today?"

"It's very simple, Arthur – _Pottermore." _There was a moment of silence where Merlin paused in frantic IMing with Gwen, head tilted back to see Arthur's reaction. He was met with a blank stare.

"Gesundheit." Merlin continued to watch him intently, horrified. "What's Pottermore?"

"You, Arthur Pendragon," He said, matter-of-factly, pointing a finger in the direction of Arthur's face, narrowly avoiding sticking his finger up his nose. "are an appalling person and I am ashamed to call you my boyfriend."

"He didn't even know what it _was, _Morgana!" Merlin hissed down the phone. Arthur had switched on the TV not long after their Pottermore discussion (or enlightenment, in Arthur's case), and as much as Merlin loved Arthur, he couldn't bear to sit through anymore cricket. Leaving Arthur in the capable hands of the England Cricket team, Merlin had snuck into the kitchen to call Morgana and demand to know if her brother had always been that oblivious to things of great importance. Apparently, he had been. "How can he be _my _boyfriend, and _your _brother and not know what Pottermore is?"

"_He always has had a questionable intelligence when it comes to cultural masterpieces. Ask him anything about Law, or History or even the poems of Tennyson and he can tell you without even thinking, but Harry Potter? Nothing." _She paused, sighing long-sufferingly. _"The only consolation I can offer you is that he has at least read the books and watched all of the films. And the fact that it's one less person to fight against for a place."_

"That's true," Merlin brightened a little at that. "But still, it's all I've been talking about for the last week, at least. Surely he would've picked _something _up?"

"_Oh, Merlin, darling," _She began, her voice laced with pity. _"The cricket is on. Arthur's attention has been on the test match and nothing else for the past week, sweetheart. Nothing else matters right now. Don't take it personally though," _She added cheerfully. _"Leon is just as bad and Gwen informs me Lancelot is just the same. I would say it's a man thing, but, you know…"_

"Sometimes, Morgana," Merlin said ruefully, "I feel like the woman in this relationship."

"_Oh, babe, has it taken you this long to notice?"_

"Arthur."

"Yes, Merlin?"

"Arthur."

"What?"

"Arrrrthurrrr."

"For the love of- _what, _Merlin?" Arthur put his book down heavily, peering over the top of his glasses in a way that he hoped was menacing, but was probably just amusing (Merlin thought they were boring and made him look like a librarian, with their simple black, thick rims. Arthur liked to think they were sophisticated.) Merlin was sprawled across the armchair in the corner of the living room, gangly legs hanging over one arm, his head dramatically thrown back across the other.

"When is the clue being posted?"

"I don't know, Merlin. Even after the million times you've asked me, I still do not know. Have you asked Gwen?"

Merlin gestured to the mobile resting on his chest. Now that he looked, Arthur realized that it was actually his. He'd been looking for that. "I've been talking to her _all evening. _She's heard _nothing. _How is that even possible, Arthur? How can nobody know anything? Surely someone's leaked _something?_"

Arthur had been pretty surprised by the way they'd managed to keep Pottermore completely under wraps. Normally, when something big like this happened, someone somewhere along the line leaked the entire thing (Like that X-Men: Origins film) to the highest bidder, but not this time. He was genuinely impressed that no one knew anything, and even if they did, they weren't talking. Not that he'd ever tell Merlin that (he quite liked this life, thank you very much.)

"I don't know, Merlin. Sheer dumb luck?" Merlin merely grunted, throwing an arm over his face. "Hey," he continued, when the mobile started to vibrate. "Are you using all my texts?"

"…Maybe."

"Remind me again why I am still awake at 2 O'clock in the morning, Merlin."

"Because you love me?"

"Well, yes, but, why?" They were both spread across the sofa, Arthur wedged in the corner with Merlin sat with his back against his chest. Merlin shrugged, pulling the sleeves of Arthur's old Rugby jumper over his hands. They'd both long since changed into something more comfortable when they'd realized that it was going to a long night – Merlin was wearing pyjama bottoms and one of Arthur's old jumpers that he'd long since taken ownership of, while Arthur was sporting a simple t-shirt and boxer combination (He was pretty sure the boxers in question were Merlin's – the Cookie Monster pattern confirmed that.).

"Because…" He began, nursing a steaming mug of tea between his hands. "It's fun?" Arthur remained silent, sipping at his mug of coffee. "Because you're secretly desperate to find out about Pottermore?" Arthur snorted – that stuff was catching, he was sure of it. He was probably the only person he knew that wasn't obsessed with the damn thing. "No? Maybe because you're too much of a softie to go to bed by yourself?"

Okay, maybe that bit was slightly true. "Possibly."

Merlin let out a huff of laughter, tapping the laptop to wake it up. The poor thing had been on for hours now so that Merlin could keep refreshing the Pottermore home page. It sounded as tired as Arthur felt. When it dragged itself into consciousness once more, Arthur scowled – He was beginning to resent that "7 books, 7 days, 7 chances" slogan now.

"Still no clue?" Merlin shook his head. Arthur groaned, dropping his head onto Merlin's shoulder. "You've got to be kidding me!"

"I thought you weren't interested?" He teased, reaching up to pat Arthur on the head.

"I'm not." He said, his words muffled by Merlin's shoulder. "I just want to go to bed."

"Then go to bed, old man."

"I don't want to go on my own," He said, poking Merlin in the ribs. "That would be abysmally sad and depressing."

"Go to sleep there then."

"I think you will find, _Mer_lin, that I am perfectly capable of staying awake just as much as you are."

"Quit whining then."

Arthur huffed, nuzzling his nose into Merlin's neck. " You are so unbelievably sympathetic and caring."

"I know. You are phenomenally lucky to have me."

"Arthur!"

Arthur sat up sharply, arms flailing as he tried to get his bearings and balance himself. "What? What'sgoingon? Are we being burgled? Where's my cricket bat?" He blinked sleepily for a moment, rubbing desperately at his eyes in an attempt to clear them. Merlin was stood at the end of the sofa, looking down at him, his chest heaving as if he's run a long distance. In truth, he'd just leapt up from the armchair. He'd moved there when Arthur had first fallen asleep to give him a bit more room. That and the fact that his snoring was incredibly distracting.

"Forget the cricket bat! Where's the first Harry Potter book?"

"What?" It takes a moment for Arthur to process what's going on – what use would a book be against burglars? – before he realizes. "The clue! It's up?" He threw himself off the sofa quicker than he thinks he's ever done in his life, knocking the empty coffee mug and his book off the coffee table in his haste to get his balance. He's aware that the living room curtains are open, and that he could be flashing his underwear to any unsuspecting passers-by, but he doesn't care right now. Merlin needs him.

"Yes, it's up! Where's the book? Unless you know how many owls there were on Eeylop's Owl Emporium sign off the top of your head?"

"…Who is Eeylop?"

"Does it matter? Where's the bloody book?"

He paused for a moment, racking his brain. They actually own several copies of the book, what with anniversary editions and box sets that Merlin wanted and his uncanny ability to lose _everything. _Now that he thought about it, it seemed that he was actually incapable of saying no to Merlin – he'd probably spent a small fortune over the years because of Merlin's puppy-dog eyes. Whenever Merlin fixed him with that look, he always found himself unable to deny his anything. Merlin thought it was great, but Arthur's bank statement tended to disagree. "My office!" He cried, suddenly remembering.

They both looked at each other for a moment, before Merlin threw himself through the doorway and into the office, Arthur close behind. One wall was completed dominated by a frankly monstrous bookcase that somehow they have both managed to fill with books upon books (Despite it's size, they still had a few piles of books next to the damn thing that there wasn't room for.), and it's here, on the second shelf, in between Lord of the Rings and the first three books of The Chronicles of Narnia (God knows , that they find the book they're looking for.

Merlin practically tears it off the shelf, wrenching the poor thing open to what he hopes is near the section he's looking for. They stay in tense silence for about thirty seconds as Merlin furiously flicks through the pages, until he makes Arthur jump several feet in the air by shouting,

"Five! Five, Arthur! Multiply that by fourty-nine!" Before he can even open his mouth to reply, Merlin's back out the door, running for the laptop as if his life depends on it, crying, "Two hundred and fourty five!". As he thinks about it, Arthur doesn't want to know what will happen if Merlin doesn't get a place, so maybe, _Arthur's _life depends on it. Shuddering at the thought, Arthur hurries after him, hoping to God they were quick enough.

Arthur leant back heavily against the sofa, hair still dripping from his shower. He grips his mug of coffee between his hands, resting it on his leg. The heat of it is burning through his jeans, but frankly, he can't bring himself to move it. Merlin's still upstairs, taking an infuriatingly long time in the shower, probably conditioning his hair _again. _As Arthur finally gets comfortable, and is just about to drift off into sleep, his phone rings. Opening his eyes slowly, he scowled at it, still across the room from where Merlin had it earlier that morning. It takes a lot of time for Arthur to drag himself off the sofa and over to the phone, and almost as long to pick it up and answer it.

"Hullo?"

"_Arthur! Sorry, I was expecting Merlin."_

Arthur bristled a little. "It's my phone, Morgana."

"_I know. But Merlin seems to use it more than you. Whatever, that doesn't matter. I told myself I wouldn't get caught up in this and would be completely mature and wait until October, but… I got in! Did Merlin?"_

Arthur sighed. Even his _sister _had got carried away by it all. "Honestly, Morgana, I expected better of you. Am I the only person left on this godforsaken planet that _isn't _obsessed with Pottermore?"

"_Oh, probably. After all, you do have less brains than the average person."_

"Hey!"

"_No one cares about you and your last-man-standing spiel, Arthur. Did. Merlin. Get. In?"_

Arthur sighed. "Yes. Yes, he got in. And I am now partially deaf because of it." Merlin had watched with bated breath while the page loaded once he'd entered his answer, clinging so tightly to Arthur's arm that it had actually begun to bruise. Once the 'congratulations!' page had appeared, Merlin had shouted something incomprehensibly happy right in Arthur's ear. He could still hear it now.

"_Oh thank God. I would've felt awful if I'd got in and he hadn't. Do you know his username?" _She paused, then gasped. _"Oh my God what about Gwen? Has she got in?" _

"Oh for the love of-" Arthur was cut off by the sudden ringing of the doorbell. "I'll have to call you back, Morgana. Well, I'll probably forget. Speak to you later." As Arthur started toward the door, his movement slowed by lack of sleep and effort, Merlin sauntered down the stairs, his expression extremely smug.

"Was that Morgana?" He asked, joining Arthur by the door.

"Yes," He said, turning the key in the lock. "Would you like to explain to me why people assume that you are going to answer my phone?" Merlin was not given a chance to reply, however, because as soon as Arthur opened the door, a squealing Gwen came flying through it, screaming something along the lines of, 'I got in! What's your username?' From the doorstep, Lancelot gave Arthur an apologetic look, smiling.

"She got in then?" He asked, laughing as Lancelot rolled his eyes, offering Arthur a bottle of wine.

"Yes. How ever did you guess?"

"Merlin got in too, in case you haven't noticed. And Morgana, as well." He said, clapping Lancelot on the shoulder, ushering everyone into the living room. "Well," He started, when they had all sat down. "At least I've got you to keep me sane, Lance."

Gwen snorted. "Hardly," She said, wrapping her arms around his neck. "He got in before I did. You should've heard him. I thought he'd won the lottery."

Arthur dropped his head into his hands, disbelieving. _Lance? _Of all people? This was insane. "You've all gone completely mad!" He cried, voice muffled by his hands.

Merlin placed a comforting hand on his shoulder. "Have you ever thought that it might be you?"

"God," He said, standing up sharply. "I can't even look at you people. Please excuse me while I go and save what is left of my masculinity and watch the cricket. You," Here he pointed at Lancelot, who had perked up at the mention of sport. "are not worthy of cricket. You can stay here and _fester _with the rest of the nerds." He gestured vaguely at Merlin and Gwen. "Strauss would be _ashamed." _


End file.
